‘Bad Boys: Ride or Die’ boosts Will Smith’s comeback and the box office with $56 million opening

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NEW YORK (AP) — The fourth installment of Will Smith and Martin Lawrence's action comedy series “Bad Boys: Ride or Die” opened with an estimated $56 million in theaters over the weekend, giving Hollywood a much-needed summer hit. mechanism. Smith had his biggest hit since slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars.

Expectations have been all over the map for “Ride or Die” given the dismal movie market so far this summer and Smith's less certain clout at the box office. In the end, though, the Sony Pictures release came in very close to or slightly above tracking expectations.

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Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, “Ride or Die” is Smith’s first theatrical test since his 2022 rock slap led to him being denied an Oscar for 10 years. The “Bad Boys” film was in development at the time and was temporarily delayed, but eventually went ahead with a production budget of about $100 million.

Smith starred in Apple's “Emancipation” release, but that film — set for release in late 2022 — was filmed before the slap and received only a modest theatrical release before streaming.

This time, Smith largely avoided soul-searching interviews in view of the Oscars, instead going on a red carpet publicity tour from Mexico to Saudi Arabia, where he attended what was billed as the country's first Hollywood premiere. The 55-year-old Smith, who for years was one of Hollywood's most bankable stars, has appeared on “The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon” and the “Hot Ones” series on YouTube, and on Friday he made a surprise appearance at a movie in Los Angeles. stage.

Given that “Bad Boys” fell behind May disappointments like “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” and “The Fall Guy” — both of which struggled to attract ticket buyers despite very good reviews — the opening of “Ride or Die” is a momentous event. Weekend win for movie business.

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“The fact that the film over-performed is the best possible news,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “It seems like all we've been doing over the past few weeks and almost since the beginning of the year, with a few exceptions, is trying to figure out why well-marketed, well-reviewed movies are performing poorly. This ignites the spark the industry has been waiting for.”

“Ride or Die” still can't quite match the opening of the previous “Bad Boys” film: 2020's “Bad Boys for Life.” That film, released in January 2020, debuted with $62.5 million. After the pandemic shuttered theaters, it was the highest-grossing release in North America that year, with $204 million domestically.

“Ride or Die” added $48.6 million internationally. Although reviews were mixed (64% on Rotten Tomatoes), audiences gave the film a solid “A-” CinemaScore. Black moviegoers represent 44% of ticket buyers, the largest demographic.

In the film, which comes 29 years after the original, Smith and Lawrence reprise their roles as Miami detectives. The plot revolves around uncovering a plot to frame the late police chief (Joe Pantoliano). In one of the film's most notable scenes, Lawrence slaps Smith and calls him a “bad boy.”

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Movie theaters will need a lot more than Bad Boys: Ride or Die to right the ship. Ticket sales are down 26% from last year and 40% below pre-pandemic totals, according to Comscore. There will be a big test next weekend with the release of Pixar's “Inside Out 2.” After sending several Pixar releases straight to Disney+, the studio has committed to a traditional feature-length theatrical release this time around.

Last weekend's top movie, “The Garfield Movie,” fell to second place. Also from Sony, the animated family comedy collected $10 million in ticket sales during its third weekend, bringing its domestic total to $68.6 million.

The other new wide release released over the weekend, “The Watchers,” failed to capture the attention of moviegoers. The horror film, directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan, daughter of M. Night Shyamalan, is about a 28-year-old artist stranded in Ireland. After poor reviews, the Warner Bros. release was a hit. $7 million in 3,351 theaters.

This allowed If, a fantasy film about Ryan Reynolds' imaginary friend, to take third place in its fourth weekend of release, bringing Paramount Pictures' domestic total to $93.5 million. In fifth place was “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” which earned $5.4 million in its fifth weekend of release. It has grossed $150 million domestically and $360 million worldwide.

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